The present invention relates to a flower pot device for use in providing for the controlled emission of moisture about the outer periphery of a flower or other plant contained therein. The present device provides a relatively humit atmosphere in the immediate vicinity of the plant environment which aids in keeping the plant foliage fresh and clean as well as providing moisture thereto. In addition, the present device simultaneously provides for the conventional watering of the plant root structure with the added feature of draining off any excess fluid retained in the plant medium. Drainage of excess fluid from the plant medium is extremely important because it prevents stagnation and drowning of the root structure and promotes the vigorous and healthy growth thereof.
It is well known that the health of foliage plants not only depends on the amount of water in their soil, but also depends on the moisture in the air surrounding them. One only needs to enter a greenhouse to notice immediately how those plants contained therein thrive in an environment of sufficient humidity. Without a relatively humit atmosphere in the immediate vicinity of the plant to encourage plant growth and vigor, maintenance becomes extremely difficult. Often times plants are over-watered in an effort to compensate for the lack of humidity in the immediate vicinity of the plant environment. This over-watering drowns the root structure of the plant and causes water-logging and stagnation which is detrimental to both plant life and growth. Therefore, it is desirable to increase the humidity in the immediate vicinity of each individual plant while at the same time providing means for preventing stagnation and drowning of the root structure while not interfering with the normal plant maintenance activities.
Many different methods of humidifying and watering plants are known and have been employed for use in providing a relatively humid atmosphere for house plants and the like. All such devices suffer from certain disadvantages and shortcomings including being costly, cumbersome, and sometimes requiring extenstive maintenance. The device of this invention overcomes these disadvantages and shortcomings and provides a simple unitary construction which permits easy access to a replenishable reservoir for humidifying the immediate vicinity of the plant foliage while at the same time permitting maximum flexibility in individual plant placement.
The known prior art devices include a variety of humidifying and watering mechanisms adapted for providing moisture about the periphery of a plant foliage; see for examples the constructions shown in Gibbs U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,794; Alwell U.S. Pat. No. 4,067,143; and Adam U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,315. The known constructions for the most part are characterized by complicated and cumbersome mechanisms utilized for either controlling the humidity in the immediate vicinity of a potted plant or for irrigating the plant medium surrounding the plant roots. Although the various mechanisms disclosed in the above-identified patents have attempted to improve the water distribution and the humdifying and aeration characteristics of plants receptacles, many disadvantages and shortcomings still exist. For example, the prior art constructions are relatively large, bulky and cumbersome, and most constructions require attachment means for adapting the particular mechanisms to a conventional flow pot structure. Furthermore, no known device utilizes a unitary structure configuration which provides for the emission of controlled moisture about the foliage of a plant while simultaneously providing for the watering of the plant in a conventional manner with additional means for draining off any potentially stagnating water retained in the plant receptacle. Drainage from the plant receptacle prevents stagnation and drowning of the root structure of the plant and avoids water-logging which would otherwise keep out essential air molecules which are vital to the growth of the root structure and to the activity of beneficial soil organisms. For these and other reasons, the known constructions have enjoyed limited usefulness.
The present device overcomes these and other shortcomings and disadvantages of known prior art devices including the humidifying and irrigation mechanisms disclosed in the named patents, and teaches the construction and operation of a relatively simple construction both structurally and operationally which is also relatively inexpensive to make, use, repair and replace. The present device can be easily and conveniently molded into a unitary structure or it can be comprised of easily fabricated component parts assembled into a unitary structural configuration. In either construction, the present device is adaptable for use with individual plants so as to permit maximum versatility and flexibility in plant arrangement and placement.